Sponge product

ABSTRACT

A multi-surface sponge product includes a foraminous portion adhered to an abrasive portion to form a unitary product, each portion and the resulting product having a pair of sidewalk and in cross-section or side elevation having the form of a parallelogram. The sidewalls form gripping areas and the angled forward and reward end opposite ends of the parallelogram shaped body form wedges. The multi-surface body is low profile and various edges and corners thereof enable the foraminous and abrasive portions to be selectively used to engage corners of many differently configured surfaces to be cleaned, to either scrub the surface or simply clean or absorb fluid, depending on which portion of the product is emplaced in the edge or in a corner.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

The present application is a continuation of prior U.S. application Ser.No. 11/880,060 titled “Sponge Product,” filed Jul. 19, 2007, now U.S.Pat. No. 7,996,950 which claims priority to U.S. Provisional PatentApplication No. 60/831,756 titled “Sponge Product,” filed Jul. 19, 2006,the entire disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present invention pertains to cleaning appliances. Moreparticularly, the present invention pertains to household cleaningappliances. Even more particularly, the present invention pertains tosponges having both an abrasive and a sponge portion.

As is known to those skilled in the art to which the present inventionpertains, sponges and similar appliances are used for cleaningcountertops, sinks, bowls, cars, etc. in just about every type ofenvironment, be it industrial or domestic, household. Typically, asponge is a foraminous material, whether natural or synthetic. Recently,there has been developed, sold and marketed a unitary cleaning producthaving both a sponge portion and an abrasive portion.

As is to be readily appreciated one of the problems encountered withthis type of product is the inability to effectively reach into cornersas well as along edges for effective scrubbing and cleaning.

The prior art has revealed products but none of which are susceptiblefor effectively cleaning an edge or a corner. See, for example, U.S.Pat. No. 1,966,101, issued Jul. 10, 1934 to Miller; U.S. Pat. No.3,611,469, issued Oct. 12, 1971 to Belli; U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,993,issued Jan. 24, 1975 to Guthrie; and U.S. Design Patent No. D473,027,issued Apr. 8, 2003 to Pecaut.

As will subsequently be detailed the present invention overcomes theproblems in the prior art by providing a sponge product which providesboth a foraminous portion as well as an abrasive portion and which canreadily reach into corners and edges.

SUMMARY

In accordance herewith there is provided a multi-surface sponge product,which has a foraminous portion and an abrasive portion, which arespecially configured and joined to one another to form a unitaryassembly in the form of a unitized hand grippable block or body, whichin side elevation or cross-section is in the form of a parallelogram.

The foraminous and abrasive portions are in the form of parallel layersand each portion has opposite sidewalls and a cross-section in the formof a parallelogram. The portions or layers are joined together such asby an adhesive and the individual parallelogram cross-sections combinedto form a single parallelogram shaped block having angled ends or wedgesat the opposite ends thereof formed by respective inclined surfaces ofthe parallelogram shaped body. Inclined surfaces formed on therespective layers or portions combine and are coplanar. The top andbottom surfaces of the foraminous and abrasive layers are parallel,spaced apart, rectangular shaped, and define edges and corners that maybe effectively brought into contact with an edge or corner of a worksurface to either scrub the surface or simply clean or observe fluid,depending on which portion of the product is being used.

For a more complete understanding of the present invention reference ismade to the following detailed description and accompanying drawing. Inthe drawing, like reference characters refer to like parts throughoutthe several views in which:

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective of a sponge product according to the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a top plan view of the sponge product shown in FIG. 1, and

FIG. 3 is a side view of the sponge product shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Now, and with reference to the drawings, there is depicted therein asponge product 10 according to this invention. The sponge product 10,preferably, comprises a foraminous portion or layer 12 and an abrasiveportion or layer 14, each portion in side elevation or cross-section isin the form or a parallelogram shaped body, and the portions 12 and 14joined to form a unitary block 24, which in side elevation orcross-section is in the form of a parallelogram shaped body having a topsurface 20, a bottom surface 16, front and rear faces 23 and 25, andplanar parallelogram shaped sidewalls 26 and 28. The surfaces 16, 20,23, and 25 are generally planar and rectangular shaped.

The top and bottom surfaces 20 and 16 are generally parallel to oneanother and form exterior cleaning surfaces of the sponge product. Thetop surface 20 of the abrasive portion 14 is used for scrubbing.Preferably, the surfaces 16 and 20 are relatively close to one anotherto provide a low profile sponge body capable of reaching into hard toclean areas. The bottom surface 16 of the foraminous portion 12 is usedfor less aggressive cleaning wherein the quality of the surface is aconcern and also for absorbing fluids. The terms top and bottom and/orupper and lower are relative and depend on how the sponge is oriented inuse. The terms are used herein as a means of describing structure in thedrawing figures.

The front and rear faces 23 and 25 are generally parallel to one anotherand at an acute angle 0 to the top and bottom faces 20 and 16. Togetherwith the surfaces 16 and 20, the surfaces form wedges at the oppositeends of the sponge 10. Depending on the manner that the sponge productis held and the positioning of the foraminous and abrasive portions 12and 14 for surface cleaning and use initiated, the front face 23 may bethe rear face and the rear face 25 the front face.

The sidewalls 26 and 28 are generally planar and. Parallel to oneanother and generally at a right angle to the surfaces 20, 25, 16, and23 that form the parallelogram shape of the block 24. In someapplications, the sidewalls 26 and 28 may be at an acute angle to thesurfaces 20 and 16 and form in side elevation or cross-section aparallelogram shape.

The foraminous portion 12 has the lower surface 16 and an upper surface18, laterally spaced sidewalls 26 a and 28 a, and from and rear walls 23a and 25 a.

The abrasive portion 14 has the upper surface 20 and a bottom surface22, laterally spaced sidewalls 26 b and 28 b, and front and rear walls23 b and 25 b.

The surfaces 18 and 22 are joined together by any suitable means, suchby sonic welding, gluing, flame laminating or the like to form a unitaryproduct in the form of the parallelogram shaped block 24. So joined, thesidewall 26 is formed by the sidewalls 26 a and 26 b, the sidewall 28 isformed by the sidewalls 28 a and 28 b, the inclined front wall (orwedge) 23 is formed by the wall portions 23 a and 23 b, and the inclinedrear wall (or wedge) 25 is formed by the wall portions 25 a and 25 b.When the portions 12 and 14 are joined, the walls 23 a, 28 a, 25 a and28 a of the foraminous portion 12 and the walls 23 b, 28 b, 25 b, and 28b of the abrasive portion 14 form generally continuous planar surfaces,as shown in the drawings.

As shown in the drawings, the front and rear walls 23 and 25 of theparallelogram shape are inclined and at an acute angle 0 with respect tothe bottom surface 16 and top surface 20. The angle 0 is less than 90°and, depending on the application, the angle 0 is about between 35° and70°, and preferably, as shown, about 60°.

Additionally, so joined into the parallelogram shaped block 24, thesponge and abrasive portions or layers 12 and 14 of the sponge product10 form a plurality of edges 12 a, 12 b, 12 c, and 12 d and 14 a, 14 b.14 c, and 14 d. The sponge product 10 and the respective edges of theforaminous and abrasive portions 12 and 14 can effectively be broughtinto contact with an edge or corner of a surface to either scrub thesurface via the abrasive portion or simply clean or absorb fluid throughthe foraminous portion.

Preferably, the sponge is dimensioned to enable a user to grip thesponge by the sidewalls 26 and 28 and maneuver the body 24 as desired.

The foraminous or sponge-type portion typically comprises a polyurethanefoam and, more particularly, an open-celled hydrophilic, polyurethanefoam. The actual manufacture of these foams is well known in the art.

For example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,841,586 and 6,855,741, the disclosuresof which are hereby incorporated by reference there is disclosed thereinthe manufacture of useful polyester polyol-based polyurethane foams.Typically, these foams utilize suitable polyester polyols such as thoseproduced by reacting a dicarboxylic and/or monocarboxylic acid with anexcess of a diol and/or polyhydroxy alcohol, for example, adipic acid,glutaric acid, succinic acid, phthalic acid or anhydride, and/or fattyacids (linolic acid, oleic acid and the like) with diethylene glycol,ethylene glycol, propylene glycol, dipropylene glycol, 1,4-butanediol,neopentyl glycol, trimethylolpropane, trimethylolethane, and/orpentaerythritol Examples of these polyols are LEXOREZ 1102-50 or LEXOREZ1102-60 from Molex Chemical Company or FOMREZ 50 or FOMREZ 60 fromCrompton Corporation. Other suitable polyester polyols can be preparedby reacting a lactone with an excess of a diol such as caprolactone withpropylene glycol. Sec U.S. Pat. No. 4,331,555 for father discussion ofsuitable polyester polyols, the disclosure of which is herebyincorporated by reference.

Generally, however, these polyester polyurethane foams are prepared fromthe reaction of a hydrophilic polyester polyol and a polyisocyanate.Hydrophilic ester polyols are typically reaction products ofpolyethylene glycol and adipic acid. Examples are FOMREZ 45 fromCrompton and LEXOREZ 1105-HV2 from Inolex Chemical Company.

The “hydroxyl number” for a polyol is a measure of the amount ofreactive hydroxyl groups available for reaction. The value is reportedas the number of milligrams of potassium hydroxide equivalent to thehydroxyl groups found in one gram of the sample. “Functionality” of apolyol is defined as the average number of hydroxyl group sites permolecule. Preferably, the polyester polyols ordinarily used to form thefoams have a hydroxyl number in the range of 20 to 150, more preferably,in the range of 40 to 100, and most preferably in the range of 50 to 60.

The term “polyisocyanate” refers particularly to isocyanates that havepreviously been suggested for use in preparing polyurethane foams.“Polyisocyanates” include di- and poly-isocyanates and prepolymers ofpolyols and polyisocyanates having excess isocyanate groups available toreact with additional polyol. The amount of polyisocyanate employed isfrequently expressed by the term “index”, which refers to the actualamount of isocyanate required for reaction with all of the activehydrogen-containing compounds present in the reaction mixture multipliedby 100. For most foam applications, the isocyanate index is in the rangeof between about 75 to 140.

The polyester polyurethane foams are prepared using any suitable organicpolyisocyanates well known in the art including, for example,hexamethylene diisocyanate, phenylene diisocyanate, toluene diisocyanate(TDI) and 4,4′-diphenylmethane diisocyanate (MDI). The methylenediisocyanates suitable for use are diphenyl methane diisocyanate andpolymethylene polyphenyl isocyanate blends (sometimes referred to as“MDI” or “polymeric MDI”). The MDI blends can contain diphenylmethane4,4′ diisocyanate, as well as 2,2′- and 2,4′-isomers and highermolecular weight oligomers and have an isocyanate functionality of fromabout 2.1 to 2.7, preferably from about 2.1 to 2.5. Preferably, theisocyanate is selected from a commercial mixture of 2,4- and 2,6-toluenediisocyanate. A well-known commercial toluene diisocyanate is TD80, ablend of 80% 24-toluene diisocyanate and 20% 26-toluene diisocyanate.Polyisocyanates are typically used at a level of between 20 and 90 partsby weight per 100 parts of polyol, depending upon the polyol OH contentand water content of the formulation.

One or more surfactants may also be employed in the foam-formingcomposition. The surfactants lower the bulk surface tension, promotenucleation of bubbles, stabilize the rising cellular structure, emulsifyincompatible ingredients, and may have some effect on the hydrophilicityof the resulting foam. The surfactants typically used in polyurethanefoam applications are polysiloxane-polyoxyalkylene copolymers, which aregenerally used at levels between about 0.5 and 3 parts by weight per 100parts polyol. In the present invention, from 1.0 to 3.0 parts by weightper 100 parts polyol of surfactant is preferred. Surfactants, which mayfor example be organic or silicone based, such as FOMREZ M66-86A (Witco)and L532 (Osi Specialties) may be used to stabilize the cell structure,to act as emulsifiers and to assist in mixing. Most preferably, thesurfactant is a cell opening silicone surfactant in an amount from 1.5to 2.5 parts by weight per 100 parts polyol.

Catalysts are used to control the relative rates of water-polyisocyanate(gas-forming or blowing) and polyol-polyisocyanate (gelling) reactions.The catalyst may be a single component, or in most cases a mixture oftwo or more compounds. Preferred catalysts for polyurethane foamproduction are organotin salts and tertiary amines. The amine catalystsare known to have a greater effect on the water-polyisocyanate reaction,whereas the organotin catalysts are known to have a greater effect onthe polyol-polyisocyanate reaction. The amount of catalyst used dependsupon the formulation employed and the type of catalyst, as known tothose skilled in the art.

Suitable urethane catalysts are all those well known to the workerskilled in the art, including tertiary amines such astriethylenediamine, N-methylimidazole, 2-dimethylimidazole,N-methylmorpholine, N-ethylmorpholine, triethylamine, tributylamine,triethanolamine, dimethylethanolamine and bisdimethylaminodiethylether,and organotins such as stannous octoate, stannous acetate, stannousoleate, stannous laurate, dibutyltin dilaurate and dibutyltinbis(2-ethylhexanoate), and other such tin salts. Other useful catalystsinclude tin 2-ethylcaproate, tin naphthoate, tin octylate and the like.These catalysts may be used singly or in combination and it may be moreeffective to use an amine together with an organometallic compound or anorganic acid salt of a metal. Catalysts should be present at about0.0001 to about 5 weight percent of the reaction mixture.

Other useful amines which may be used as the catalyst in the presentinvention include, for example, trialkylamines, such as triethyleneamine; N,N,N′,N′-tetramethyl-1,3-butanediamine; amino alcohols such asdimethyl ethanolamine; ester amines such as ethoxylamine,ethoxyldiamine, bis-(diethylethanolamine)adipate; triethylenediamine;cyclohexylamine derivatives such as N,N-dimethylcyclohexylamine;morpholine derivative such as N-methylmorpholine; and piparazinederivatives such as N,N′-diethyl-2-methylpiparazine,N,N′-bis-(2-hydroxypropyl)-2-methylpiparazine, dimethylaminoethyl)etherand the like.

The catalysts, including1,3,5-tris-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)-1,3,5-triazine,bis-(3-dimethylaminopropyl)methyl-amine, potassium acetate, potassiumoctoate, and DBU, and the methods of use of U.S. Pat. No. 5,539,011 areexemplary and are incorporated herein by reference.

Water is preferably the sole blowing agent to produce carbon dioxide byreaction with the isocyanate. Water is usually used at about 0.1 toabout 10 parts per hundred parts of polyol, by weight (pphp), preferablybetween about 2 and about 8 pphp, more preferably between about 3 andabout 6.5 pphp, most preferably between about 3.5 and about 5.8. At foamindexes below 100, the stoichiometric excess of water blows, viavaporization, and cools the foam, and does not take part of the reactionto produce carbon dioxide.

The use of water as the foaming agent in flexible polyurethane foamsincreases the firmness of the resulting foams. A soft, flexible,plasticized water-blown polyurethane foam composition can be producedfrom the reaction of a polyol and toluene diisocyanate by adding aplasticizer selected from the group of phthalates, phosphate esters andbenzoates to the reaction compounds. The types of plasticizers used inthis invention are described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,624,968, the disclosureof which is incorporated by reference herein.

Other blowing agents that are conventionally used in the art may be usedherein, such as fluorocarbon compounds, includingtrichlorofluoromethane, methylene chloride, methyl chloroform, as wellas acetone can be included. While the amount of inert blowing materialmay range from about 0 to about 30 pphp, commercially acceptable foamscan generally be made using between about 0 and about 8 pphp, typicallybetween about 0 and about 5 pphp, more typically between about 1 andabout 3 pphp.

A double-cell structure may be created to replicate the appearance ofnatural sea sponges. Materials used to create a double cell structuremay be added to the foam forming mixture. These include: castor oilderivatives, stearic acid, acetic acid and low melting point waxes.These materials create voids larger than the prevailing pores within theresulting foam structure. If used, the double-cell additive preferablyis added in an amount from 0.04 to 0.21 parts per 100 parts polyol.

Plasticizers which may be used include phthalate plasticizers such as,for example, alkyl aryl phthalates, or a benzyl phthalates, includingbutyl benzyl phthalate, alkyl benzyl phthalate, preferably wherein thealkyl group has a carbon chain of from seven to nine carbon atoms,Texanol® benzyl phthalate, (which is2,2,4-trimethyl-1,3-pentanediol-monobutyrate benzyl phthalate), alkylphenyl phthalate, symmetrical and unsymmetrical dialkyl phthalatesincluding diisononyl phihalate, diisodecyl phthalate, dioctyl phthalate,Di-n-butyl phthalate, Dioctyl phthalate, dihexyl phthalate, diheptylphthalate, butyloctyl phthalate, linear dialkyl phthalate wherein thealkyl groups are independently carbon chains having from seven to elevencarbon atoms, and butyl cyclohexyl phthalate; phosphate esterplasticizers such as, for example, 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate,isodecyl diphenyl phosphate, mixed dodecyl and tetradecyl diphenylphosphate, trioctyl phosphate, tributyl phosphate, butylphenyl diphenylphosphate and isopropylated triphenyl phosphate; and benzoateplasticizers such as, for example, Texanol® benzoate (which is2,2,4-trimethyl-1,3-pentanediol-monobutyrate benzoate), glycol benzoate,propylene glycol dibenzoate, dipropylene glycol dibenzoate, andtripropylene glycol dibenzoates.

Also, crosslinker/extenders may be incorporated into the foamformulation. As used herein, the term “crosslinker” is meant to includeboth compounds generally known as crosslinkers and compounds generallyknown as chain extenders or simply extenders. Crosslinkers are compoundsthat contain two or more isocyanate-reactive groups, such as hydroxylgroups, primary amines, and secondary amines.

Effective chain extender or crosslinkers can be from the saccharides,which were found to be generally effective and a preferred class. Thisclass includes sorbitol, sucrose, mannitol, ribose, xylitol, lactose,and fructose. Sorbitol and mannitol are more preferred. These compoundsare not soluble in the plasticizer, but these are generally soluble inwater and thus can be easily incorporated into the water-blown foamcomposition.

The polyamines, 4,1′-methylene-bis-(3-chloro-2,6-diethylaniline) (MCDEA)at 0.5 pphp, and amine terminated polyalkylene oxide such as JEFFAMINE®T-403 (Huntsman Co.) are effective. Also, alkanolamines such astriethanolamine, diethanolamine, triisopropanolamine,diisopropanolamine, t-butyltolylenediamine, triaminonane, diethyltolylene diamine, and chlorodiaminobenzene may be used.

Other materials can optionally be added to the polyurethane duringproduction to reduce problems during production or to provide desiredproperties in the polyurethane product. Among the other additives arefillers including reground polyurethane foam, calcium carbonate, bariumsulfate, and the like; UV stabilizers; fire retardants; bacteriostats;cell openers; dyes; and antistatic agents. It is also desirable toinclude stabilizers and antioxidants such as hindered amine lightstabilizers and benzotriazoles.

A cell opening agent, such as a polyethylene oxide monol or polyol of anequivalent weight greater than about 200 with a hydroxyl functionalityof two or greater, may be included. For example, one cell opening agentis a polyethylene oxide adduct of glycerol of a molecular weight ofabout 990 gins/mole, with an equivalent weight of about 330. The cellopening agent should be present at about 0.001 to about 20 pphp.

Solid stabilizing polymers and other additives, including flameretardants, colorants, dyes and anti-static agents, which areconventionally known in the art may be used with the formulations of thepresent invention. Those additives listed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,950,694 areexemplary and are incorporated herein by reference.

Other fillers and additives such as esters of aliphatic polyhydroxycompounds and unsaturated carboxylic acids may also be used. Examplesare acrylates, such as ethylene glycol diacrylate; triethylene glycoldiacrylate; tetramethylene glycol diacrylate; trimethylolpropanetriacrylate; trimethylolethane triacrylate; pentaerythritol diacrylate;pentaerythritol triacrylate; pentaerythritol tetraacrylate;dipentaerythritol tetraacrylate; dipentaerythritol pentaacrylate;dipentaerythritol hexaacrylate; tripentaerythritol octaacrylate;glycerol diacrylate; methacrylates, such as triethylene glycoldimethacrylate; tetramethylene glycol dimethacrylate; trimethylolpropanetrimethacrylate; trimethylolethane trimethacrylate; pentaerythritoldimethacrylate; pentaerythritol trimethacrylate; pentaerythritoltetramethacrylate; dipentaerythritol dimethacrylate; dipentaerythritoltrimethacrylate; dipentaerythritol tetramethacrylate; tripentaerythritoloctamethacrylate; ethylene glycol dimethacrylate; 1,4-butanedioldimethacrylate; sorbitol tetramethacrylate and the like; itaconates,such as ethylene glycol diitaconate; propylene glycol diitaconate;1,2-butanediol diitaconate; tetramethylene glycol diitaconate;pentaerythritol triitaconate and the like; crotonates such as ethyleneglycol dicrotonate; diethylene glycol dicrotonate; pentaerythritoltetracrotonate and the like; and maleates, such as ethylene glycoldimaleate; triethylene glycol dimaleate; pentaerythritol dimaleate andthe like.

An anti-oxidant, such as a hindered phenolic, i.e., IRGANOX® 1010(Ciba-Geigy), an organic □hosphate, or both, may be added to thecomposition containing the plasticizer. Stabilizers such astetrabutylhexamethylenediamine are also beneficially added.

The crosslinker/extender additive beneficially improves the integrity oflow index foams; meanwhile, the plasticizer would provide good “hand”and physical properties along with improvements to airflow and reboundproperties.

The abrasive portion of the product is, preferably, a reticulated foamproduct. These reticulated foam products are well known and commerciallyavailable. Generally, they comprise a reticulated polyurethane foam.

In preparing such reticulated abrasive foams, typically, a slow melt iscarried out in the presence of a suitable reticulating agents such asdimethylsulfoxide, dimethylacetamide, formamide dimethylformamide,II-pyrrolidone and I-methyl II-pyrrolidone. These reticulating agentscause a controlled melting of the sponge material during the freezedrying process.

Also, polyether poloyol-based hydrophobic polyurethane foams may be usedtherein for both the reticulated and non-reticulated portions. Suchcombined scouring and sponge products are disclosed in the prior artsuch as in U.S. Pat. No. 3,861,993, the disclosure of which is herebyincorporated by reference.

In practicing the present invention a particularly preferredpolyurethane foam to be used herein is that which is sold by ArmalyBrand Products under the trademark Estracell. Estracell is a syntheticpolyurethane polyester polyurethane foam which does not supportbacterial growth thereby providing a longer useful life for the product.

It should be further noted that in practicing the present invention thesponge or base portion hereof can be a cellulosic material and theabrasive portion can be a non-woven fiber which is either glued or flamelaminated to the cellulosic or cellulose portion.

Representative abrasive materials include, for example, polyesterfibers, polyethylene fibers, polypropylene fibers, nylon with or withoutaluminum oxide being incorporated therewith, and so forth.

A particularly preferred product comprises an Estracell polyurethanesponge portion and a non-woven fiber nylon abrasive material adheredthereto by flame laminating, extrusion or with a suitable adhesive.

The sponge product 10 described hereinabove provides the user with amulti-surface scrub sponge product having a low profile shape andoppositely directed wedges that reach deep into hard-to-get-to cornersand crevices as well as clean contoured and in transitions betweensurfaces. The multi-surface scrub material 12 and 14 is designed toclean most surfaces and is particularly advantageous in removing buildup in hard to reach places, such as on a stove, around a sink, bathroomand other hard to clean places found around the home. In one applicationusing ESTRACELL®, the abrasive portion 14 provides a heavy dutyaggressive scour surface that removes burned on foods and grease fromcast iron pots and pans. The foraminous or sponge side portion 12reaches in and easily wipes up and rinses dirt and food particles andmay also be used on non-stick grill tops.

It is to be readily appreciated from the preceding that there has beendescribed herein a cleaning device, which enables effective cleaning ofedges and corners.

1. A sponge product for cleaning a work surface, comprising: aforaminous body layer having an upper surface and an opposed lowersurface in parallel spaced relation to one another, a front wall andopposed rear wall that are parallel to one another, and a first sidewalland opposed second sidewall, wherein at least one of the front wall,rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall is inclined and at an acuteangle relative to the upper surface of the body layer, and an abrasivelayer adjacent only to the upper surface of the foraminous body layerand attached thereto to form a unitary product, wherein the abrasivelayer is selected from a material comprised of a reticulated abrasivefoam or a nonwoven fibrous mass, and the abrasive layer has an uppersurface and an opposed lower surface that are parallel to one another, afront wall and an opposed rear wall that are parallel to one another,and a first sidewall and an opposed second sidewall, and at least one ofthe front wall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall of theabrasive layer form an obtuse angle with the lower surface of theabrasive layer, and the abrasive layer upper surface and at least onefront wall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall forms a workingedge having an acute angle, such that the working edge remains flatagainst the work surface when a force is applied to the sponge product.2. The sponge product of claim 1, wherein the abrasive layer has aparallelogram shape and the sponge product has a parallelogram shape. 3.The sponge product of claim 1, wherein at least one of the abrasivelayer front wall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall isinclined and at an acute angle relative to the inclined front wall, rearwall, first sidewall or second sidewall of the of the foraminous bodylayer to form a continuous angled sponge wall such that a second workingedge is formed in the foraminous layer along an opposed edge to thefirst working edge.
 4. The sponge product of claim 1, wherein the acuteangle is about 30°.
 5. The sponge product of claim 1 wherein the acuteangle is about 60°.
 6. The sponge product of claim 1, wherein theforaminous body layer comprises an open-celled hydrophilic polyurethanefoam.
 7. The sponge product of claim 6, wherein the polyurethane foam isa polyester polyol-based polyurethane foam.
 8. The sponge product ofclaim 6, wherein the abrasive layer is selected from the groupconsisting of polyester fibers, polyethylene fiber, polypropylene fiber,nylon fibers and a reticulated foam.
 9. The sponge product of claim 6,wherein the abrasive layer is a non-woven nylon fiber.
 10. The spongeproduct of claim 1 wherein a shape of the sponge is rhomboidal.
 11. Thesponge product of claim 1 wherein a shape of the sponge is aquadrilateral.
 12. A sponge product for cleaning a work surface,comprising: a foraminous body layer having an upper surface and anopposed lower surface in parallel spaced relation to one another, afront wall and opposed rear wall that are parallel to one another, and afirst sidewall and opposed second sidewall, wherein at least one of thefront wall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall is inclined andat an acute angle relative to the upper surface of the body layer, andan abrasive layer adjacent only to the upper surface of the foraminousbody layer and attached thereto to form a unitary product, wherein theabrasive layer is selected from a material group consisting of polyesterfibers, polyethylene fiber, polypropylene fiber, nylon fibers and areticulated foam, and the abrasive layer has an upper surface and anopposed lower surface that are parallel to one another, a front wall andan opposed rear wall that are parallel to one another, and a firstsidewall and an opposed second sidewall, and at least one of the frontwall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewall of the abrasive layerform an obtuse angle with the lower surface of the abrasive layer, andthe abrasive layer upper surface and at least one front wall, rear wall,first sidewall or second sidewall forms a working edge having an acuteangle, such that the working edge remains flat against the work surfacewhen a force is applied to the sponge product.
 13. A sponge product forcleaning a work surface, comprising: a foraminous body layer having anupper surface and an opposed lower surface in parallel spaced relationto one another, a front wall and opposed rear wall that are parallel toone another, and a first sidewall and opposed second sidewall, whereinat least one of the front wall, rear wall, first sidewall or secondsidewall is inclined and at an acute angle relative to the upper surfaceof the body layer, and an abrasive layer adjacent only to the uppersurface of the foraminous body layer and attached thereto to form aunitary product, wherein the abrasive layer is selected from a materialcomprised of a nonwoven serous fibrous mass, and the abrasive layer hasan upper surface and an opposed lower surface that are parallel to oneanother, a front wall and an opposed rear wall that are parallel to oneanother, and a first sidewall and an opposed second sidewall, and atleast one of the front wall, rear wall, first sidewall or secondsidewall of the abrasive layer form an obtuse angle with the lowersurface of the abrasive layer, and the abrasive layer upper surface andat least one front wall, rear wall, first sidewall or second sidewallforms a working edge having an acute angle, such that the working edgeremains flat against the work surface when a force is applied to thesponge product.
 14. The sponge product of claim 13, wherein the nonwovenfibrous mass is a non-woven nylon fiber.